The 12 Days of E3: Day One

On the first day of gaming, Iwata sent to me….
A ticket to the great E3!

Hello and welcome to the 12 days of E3! Yes that’s right, you’ve somehow survived a whole year since the last E3, it’s like your birthday but better! What treats and presents are right there on the last day? There’s only one way to find out and that involved waiting 12 more days… you didn’t think there was an easier option did you, that’s just ludicrous. The Wii U and 3DS are the shows main contender this year, with the Wii U being the only (announced) new console being present at the conference, but bear in mind Miyamoto said just a few weeks before E3 that no Wii successor was going to be show, so we have to be on the ball not only with Nintendo but the competitors too. Today’s feature is selected towards the 3DS!

3DS, I choose you!
Let’s get started, there’s no denying that the first year for the 3DS was full of ups and downs, with its first few weeks doing great then slowly drawing to a miserable decline, Nintendo had to resort to drastic measures and who would’ve thought? Two Mario titles later (Super Mario 3D Land + Mario Kart 7) and one sudden price drop fixed this problem but ultimately left some gamers sour. Was their choice to buy the system so earlier good? Would this put them off buying Nintendo consoles nearer launch again? Well Nintendo had a solution for that too. 20 VC games (21 including the anniversary edition of Four Swords) later and the majority of gamers were happy again, with their NES and GBA exclusive games, along with some great eShop content (Pullblox, Letter Box and an update for StreetPass software) meant Nintendo 3DS owners were content. So, what do we expect to see the 3DS come with at E3? Well I’ll tell you.

So many games, gotta catch them all…
Now this game I’m a little wary about appearing at E3, since it’s been in development for such short time, but you never know, we may get something. If you’ve caught on, you’ll know that I’m talking about Super Smash Bros. 4. The game is in development for both Wii U and 3DS, a first for the franchise. Now I’m only a little worried about saying this because the game has only been in development for very little time, so we might get a few screenshots but be sure, they won’t be representative of the final game.

Next up we have Animal Crossing, one of Nintendo’s hugely anticipated titles for the 3DS. Boasting more content than ever and even new abilities that allow you to swim and dive into the sea, I’m sure we will see this game make an appearance at E3 this year. Connectivity will also be a huge feature, likely using the 3DS Street Pass and Spot Pass capabilities to their full potential too.

Nintendo’s latest Mario game announcement came in the form of New Super Mario Bros. 2. Giving us only four screenshots through the latest Nintendo Direct, The Big N left us hungry for more…which then then gave to us. New Super Mario Bros. 2 will not only be available from your usual retail outlets, but it will also be able available from the eShop as one big download! A first from the company, so we will surely hear more about this title and its availability during E3.

The second 3DS Mario game to attend E3 is the long awaited Paper Mario. While the series has remained a console exclusive, Paper Mario changes that and adds an extra dimension to…well…paper somehow. While the latest installment of the franchise was on the Wii with Super Paper Mario, the game left many fans undecided to whether it truly was a Paper Mario game worthy of its name. Paper Mario 3DS seeks to change all that and return the series to its roots, so information about this title at E3 is a given.

‘A sequel to a Pokémon game, madness!’ I hear you say, and while not strictly 3DS software but the game will be playable on the system, Pokémon Black 2 and White 2 is certainly going to appear at E3 in some shape or form. More details on how the 3DS makes the game better? More story details given out? Your guess is as good as mine, but be sure, it’ll be seen at the L.A center.

Monster Hunter 3 or 4 announcement(s). This has been a curious case of sorts, after a long debate, we now know it is up to Capcom whether they will bring Monster Hunter Tri to the West and no Nintendo’s. We’ve been told to wait for announcements for a long time, so what better place to do it than E3? And to make it even better and create a megaton, they could announce Monster Hunter 4 details for the 3DS too (and maybe, just maybe, make it a system exclusive).

Luigi’s Mansion 2 is a must show for E3. The sequel to the cult hit Luigi’s Mansion sees Luigi enter more missions than ever and sucking up more ghosts than you can shake a Gameboy Horror at! Is this game going to use the Circle Pad Pro to make it feel like its predecessor? Will there be Street Pass implementation? We will hopefully find out at E3.

Honourable mentions go to: Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion, Beyond the Labyrinth, Pokémon eShop downloads, Lego City Stories, Harvest Moon: The Tale of Two Towns, Sonic & All-Stars Racing Transformed, Ace Attorney and The Conduit 3DS. I’m sure there have been many titles that I’ve overlooked, by I try and get a secure look at the titles instead of making random guesses.

What? 3DS is evolving…
Let me set something straight here; at some point in its lifetime, the 3DS will be improved/revised. It’s just the natural evolution of consoles if you like. We’ve already seen Nintendo create an add-on for the system, to add two extra buttons and a circle pad, so what’s the bet that we see this incorporated into every system as standard in some time soon? I think it’s very likely, but may not happen just yet. Improved battery life is a priority though, especially if Nintendo wants gamers to leave their wireless on and Street Pass other 3DS owners!

You’ve completed this quest, but your journey has just begun!
This was the first feature in a series of 12 articles I’ll be writing up to E3. Join me tomorrow as we take a look at what else Nintendo have to offer us! Also later on in the week, prepare for some ‘different’ articles. See you then!

WiiUandMii.com and its contents (including but not limited to text, original graphics, code, and layout) are all copyright (c) 2012 WiiUandMii.com, unless otherwise stated. All rights reserved. Nintendo, Wii U, 3DS, and all related characters or entities or images are copyright (c) Nintendo and/or all other applicable parties. WiiUandMii.com is in no way affiliated with or sponsored by Nintendo or any other third party company involved with Nintendo.